I. FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a device and a method for locating and extracting lesions. More specifically, the present invention is directed toward a modified, radiopaque wire that is placed into or near afflicted tissue. The modified wire comprises markers positioned upon the modified wire at known distances from the tip of the wire. By placing the tip of the modified wire near the lesion, the markers provide information to the surgeon as to the location of the lesion without requiring the surgeon to cut completely to the tip of the wire.
II. DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART
Lesions are typically discovered by taking radiographs, including but not limited to X-ray photographs, of the suspect area. The radiographs confirm the general presence, size and location of one or more lesions. Once lesions are discovered, it is preferred that the lesions be extracted without having to dissect large portions of unafflicted tissue surrounding each lesion. However, a problem exists in having to translate the lesion shown on the radiograph to the exact location within the patient. Simply removing all tissue in the general vicinity proves unacceptable. If only a small lesion is discovered, it is essential that the lesion be identified and localized such that when the surgeon enters the tissue with his scalpel, he can enter the afflicted area in a direct cut without unnecessarily dissecting unafflicted tissue. Also, it is preferred that when the surgeon removes tissue, only the afflicted tissue or lesion be removed. Unafflicted tissue should remain undisturbed and intact.
In order to cut and remove lesions without disturbing unafflicted tissue, it is important that the lesion shown on the radiograph be located and identified within the actual patient before surgery. Typical localization techniques include a radiopaque wire guided into the patient's lesion area by taking a series of radiographs as the wire is being inserted. The surgeon targets the tip of the wire to be positioned as near as possible to the lesion. Often this involves taking a radiograph and then positioning the tip near the lesion. A second radiograph is often needed so that the tip can be repositioned nearer the lesion. The process is repeated, often requiring several radiographs, in order to place the tip as near the lesion as possible. Once the tip of the wire is satisfactorily positioned near the lesion, the tip of the wire is designed to remain secure inside the patient. A hook made by a bend at the tip of the wire attaches to surrounding tissue and insures that the wire will remain secure within the patient. With the wire secured in place, the surgeon can then use the wire as a guide for his scalpel. As the surgeon guides his scalpel along the wire, he knows that the lesion will reside at the end of the wire. Thus, he also knows that he must reach the tip of the wire in order the extract the lesion. However, if the lesion is not at the end of the wire, the surgeon may end up cutting or removing unafflicted tissue that resides at the end of the wire and not removing the lesion. Also, if the tip of the wire penetrates the lesion, the surgeon may unfortunately sever the lesion when hunting for the tip of the wire. Since it is preferred that the lesion be removed in whole, cutting the lesion risks removal of only a portion of the lesion.
Conventional wire localization methods requires that the surgeon cut down to the tip of the wire before he can then fix the exact location of the lesion. If the lesion resides at a remote location or a shallower location, or if the lesion is pierced by the wire tip, the surgeon may unavoidedly sever or remove unafflicted tissue while searching for the tip of the wire. In attempting to alleviate this problem, the surgeon will have to spend more time placing the wire such that the tip of the wire resides as near the lesion as possible, but not directly within the lesion. This may involve numerous radiographs to aid in repositioning of the wire. The possibility of overexposing the patient to radiation becomes a problem. Therefore, while it is desirable to place the wire tip as near the lesion as possible, numerous repositioning attempts may only create additional problems.